Home A-Loud
by spotty-bee
Summary: When Lucy is woken by a baby's cry in the middle of the night, its nothing new. However, finding yourself alone and being the only other person home is.


Lucy opened her eyes blearily... At first she can't tell whats going on or why she woke up. A quick look at Lynn's clock shows that it is one in the morning, far too early to rise. It was the kind of hour Edwin would be up and about, and Lucy would be as well if her parent's didn't always get mad when they found her up past nine.

That ten pm bedtime was still three years away...

Lucy rubbed at her eye, closing them to try and attempt to go back to sleep, when she heard it. The walls were thin but the other noises of the house, like the the furnace/Air conditioner and Fridge could make a lot of noise. Past the hum of working machines and noises from the outside word, Lucy could just make out Lily, crying.

It wasn't the first time a baby had woken Lucy up. There had been four of them since she had been born, and the twins had been ear piercing when they were young. Still it wasn't Lucy's responsibility to go get her. Soon enough mom and Dad would come up and settle her, or Lisa would retrieve them.

Wait...

Lucy sat up, sighing slightly. Lisa was off at a week long summer camp for children with high IQs. The camp was supposed to help them socialize and get fresh air, while still challenging their intellect. Lisa had griped about leaving her independent studies, but mom and dad were instant that she 'get out' more.

Lucy slid out of bed, shuttering at the cold of the room. She looked to Lynn's bed and found it empty as well.

Thats right, Extreme Sports Camp. She wouldn't be back for two week, unless she was seriously injured of course.

Pushing open the door and wondering across the hall to the youngest's bedroom had the crying get louder, and louder. Finally entering the small bedroom had the sound on full blast. Lily was almost screaming... How long had she been crying for?

Flicking on the lights stalled Lily, as Lucy came to the crib to look inside. The baby was red faced and sniffling. Her nose was running and she had a steady line of tears leaking from her eyes. Lily looked at her, snuffling until she recognized her black haired sister and starting to cry again. Lucy supposed that if it had been Lori or mom she might have stopped, but then again Lucy hadn't shown up to help like this before.

Lucy marched past the crib to the baby monitor on the table, picking it up for inspection. She scowled when she found it was off and quickly twisted the knob. Once on, she set the monitor right next to lily's crib, so the cries could be heard clearly.

Then she waited.

Lucy waited for the tell tale creak of the floor boards or the rattle of the stairs to sound off on one or both of her parents to come up. However it seemed, for some odd reason that they weren't coming...

Oh wait! Wait a minutes! Thats right! Aunt Ruth had fallen down her stairs yesterday and torn a ligament. Apparently one of her cats dashed out in front of her, tripping her on her way down. The Loud parents had driven down to see her and spend the night...

Wait, then who was here again?

Lincoln was sleeping over at Clyde's. Luna had a concert that she was going to, Gorillaz or something... Lori was with Bobbi on a date that would be running late... Luan had a summer of clown school. Lola was competing in a pageant in Florida and was staying with Pop Pop, Lana having gone too to see the alligators.

That left Leni.

Turning back out the door, which caused Lily to cry harder, Lucy walked back up the hall way to the eldest's bedroom this time. Upon opening it Lucy was greeted with an unexpected sight.

Two empty beds. One of which had a cell phone on the side table.

Growing concerned Lucy began to open bedroom doors, wondering if Leni had forgot which bed was her's. Luna and Luan's was empty... Nobody in Lola and Lana's. Lincoln's was empty... Lucy went halfway down the dark stairwell and looked out over the silent shadows of the living room...

"Leni?" Lucy called. "Leni?!"

Nadah.

Lucy walked down the rest of the stair, turning on the light and rubbing her eyes again. She looked around the corner to the kitchen, find it and the dining room quiet as well. There was no sign of the blonde anywhere. Walking to the front door Lucy spotted a note on the door side table.

 _'Hey guys!_

 _So like, Chantel called me and asked me to go to a midnight sale at the fabric outlet mall tonight! At first I was like, who's Chantel? Then she told me we were friends since we were three and that she was the one who broke my bike when I was seven, which made me remember! So I'm at the mall! Luna's in charge K?_

 _Love Leni.'_

What? Luna was at a concert! Wait, oh no... that meant.

Nobody but Lucy was home... For a moment her mind stalled in panic. What was she gonna do? Sure she had helped take care of her younger siblings before, but never on her own. She had given Lily bottles her mom had prepared, thrown out diapers her dad had changed, played with her while both were busy, but never direct care giving.

She wondered if she should call someone. The McBrides had been good at taking care of children, maybe they would know what to do or could send Lincoln home to help... Maybe Mr Grouse...

Then again, Lucy could vaguely recall a similar incident when she was young. Luna had been left home alone by accident with her younger siblings at the age of nine. Luna decided to call her friend's parents, whom had called child protective services...At the time she hadn't known what was happening besides a very strict woman in a stuffy outfit coming to the house to, first, yell at Luna. Then to yell at her parents when they got home twenty minutes later. Lucy could remember Lynn, who had a little more understanding of what was happening, explain that the lady could take them away from their parents and sibling to live in a prison as they weren't being taken care of properly.

Apparently it wasn't a prison, but Lynn had gotten most of it right.

That had sent Lucy into hysteria. She didn't like the lady and prison wasn't a good place to be. Thankfully she just gave the family a warning and left the parent to settle their crying kids.

That time...

This time could be different.

Lucy couldn't call Lori. The girl had told them all multiple times that she turned off her phone for dates. Not much was allowed to interrupt Bobby time. Luna's phone was off for her concert... Leni forgot her's at home,and then calling Lincoln would involve the Mc Brides, thus possibly involving CPS. Everyone else was too far away to contact and would take a few hours to get back.

She was on her own, at least for now...

Lucy jumped when Lily let out a horrible wail upstairs. She walked to the bottom stairs nervously wondering what Lily wanted. She could need changed or be hungry... maybe she had gas? That was a thing right? She recalled Mom often asking Lily if she had gas when she was fussy. Going back to the bedroom Lucy peered through the bars again.

Lily was still red faced and snotty, squirming in her crib while wailing loudly. Lucy couldn't smell anything off, so she didn't need changed... Lily took notice of her again when she turned her head, stopping her crys to reach out for the black haired girl.

"Any casket in the sunshine eh, Lily?" Lucy said in her monotone voiced before grabbing Lisa's step stool. Getting up the steps and reaching into the crib, Lucy carefully lifted Lily from the bed and into her arms. The baby quieted to a snivel, taking a lock of hair in her hands and tugging it. "Ow." Lucy grumbled as she got down from the stool, pulling Lily up at arms length to look at her.

Nothing seemed out of place. The diaper was fine, she wasn't hurt... Lily started to cry again as Lucy pulled her back close. "Do you have... gas? Or something?" Lucy asked as the baby wriggled. Lucy flinched as the baby smacked her in the face with a small hand. "Ok, thats a no I guess."

Lily squirmed harder and Lucy found herself at a loss. She desperately hoped Lily wasn't crying for the sake of hearing herself cry. When Lola was little she had cried non-stop, sometimes for no reason, day and night. Those had been some miserable days.

Hoping to appeased her sister, Lucy placed the baby to her shoulder, patting and rubbing her back. At first Lily wouldn't take, wailing right into her ear and rattling her ear drums. However after a few minutes the baby settled, murmuring slightly.

Ok... So had Lily finally fallen back to- ah!

When she went to put Lily back in her arms the baby had pulled Lucy's hair with her. No wait, Lucy winced when she realized Lily actually had her hair in her mouth. Annoyed and a little disgusted Lucy pulled it free, groaning when she studied the spit covered strands. This would require cleaning.

Lily wasn't happy either as she started to wail again, and Lucy was still not sure what the baby had been doing or still wanted. Why would she put my hair in her mouth? She never done it befo-

Oh. Oooohhhh...

"Hungry?" Lucy asked with an exasperated look. Lily seemed to comprehend the question as she nodded and flailed her arms around. Ok, hungry. Lucy could do that... hopefully. Stepping out into the dimly lit hall Lucy made her way back to the stairs, making sure to hold her howling sister in both arms. Yet when she got the top step she paused.

House Rule 44: No one under ten was allowed to carry a baby on the stairs.

That rule was in place because Lori had accidentally dropped Lincoln down the stairs when he was one. Course when the story came up Mom and Dad were quick to explain they had asked Lori to bring him down. Since then if the baby needed to go up or downstairs you handed them off to any family member over ten years of age.

Not that there was anyone to hand Lily to now.

Lucy cautiously stepped down, holding Lily tighter as she began her descent. The infant, not understanding the delicacy of the situation, wriggled in her grasp, upset and hungry. Lucy was halfway down the stairs when Lily kicked her in the elbow, crying loudly. Lucy yelped, almost dropping the child at the action. Hands rearranged themselves and she nearly slipped from the step in her socks. Lucy's heart was in her throat when her one foot stepped forward to keep balance, only to miss the step entirely and fall to the next. She stood for a moment, legs shaking trying to stay up on the two step difference, to assess her balance as Lily sobbed in her arms.

"Lily, stop!" Lucy growled, putting them nose to nose in an effort to convey her frustration. It only gave Lily the chance to yank her sister's hair again.

When Lucy finally touched ground level she sighed in relief. She carried the baby through the dark dinning room to the kitchen, turning on the lights. Opening the pantry she tugged Ol' Reliable from storage.

Ol' Reliable had been a Loud family heirloom since her great grandfather was a baby. Story went that her great great grandfather had made the highchair from solid oak and that it use to be painted black. Years of abuse had chipped off paint and nicked off decorative carvings, but Ol' Reliable was still standing, despite the decades of Loud children in this generation alone having used it.

Lori had used it, Leni had used it, every kid had sat in this chair at one point or another. Now it was Lily's chair and would be indefinitely until she got too big for it or another baby came along.

However there was no time for theoretical future Loud Babies. The current one needed tending to. Lucy tugged the step stool from the closet and set it before the chair, climbing up the steps to place Lily safely inside. Once secure and the plastic table was clipped in placed (The old wooden one having been broken by Luna as a baby) Lily began to slam her fists into it. She was still crying somehow, and hadn't lost any momentum or volume.

Lucy was just a little impressed.

She turned to the fridge, hoping to find anything to feed the baby, but found the machine almost bare. It was Thursday, and shopping day was on Saturday. Looks like they were down to rations. Lucy looked for baby food, but found only Chinese take out leftovers and old meatloaf. She pushed aside the empty Peanut butter jar and mustard bottles to look deeper, but found only food Lana would enjoy... enjoy playing with that is.

The cupboards only had dry food and Lucy knew her mother had said earlier that week that Lily was out of her baby cereal. Then again cereal was the first food to go after sweets in this house. Frowning Lucy nudged things around until she just gave up, opting to feed Lily milk.

Hopefully it would be enough to satisfy her.

Lucy got a clean bottle from the sink and filled it with milk before handing it to her sister. Lily quickly scooped it up, sucking greedily on the nub for a few seconds, only to freeze and spit it out, coughing and whining as she did so. Lucy, now covered in milk spit, groaned in defeat as her sister started to cry again, throwing the bottle to the floor. "What?! Whats wrong?!"

Lily gave no hints. She just kept bawling. Lucy actually had the temptation to leave the child there and go back to bed, frustrated and tired as she was. Only the Loud family didn't abandon one of their own, and Lily needed her.

Ok, so what did she do wrong? Was the milk off? Lucy retrieved the milk off the counter to inspect it. No it was fine for a whole week. Confused Lucy tried to think back to when Lola ,Lana and her were little. Lucy couldn't be on her own quiet yet so she was around the two babies constantly as her mother tended to all three...

Mom would... put one in the highchair and another in the baby swing. She would get the bottles and then... Oh.

Warm them up. Right. Babies like warm milk.

She recalled her mom heating up a pot of water and putting the bottles in to warm them. Lucy quickly got a pot from the lower drawer and kicked the stool to the sink to be able to reach the facet. Once full Lucy kicked the stool to the stove and set the pot of water over the largest burner. Only...

House rule 12: No using the stove unsupervised.

This rule was different, child to child. Luan still needed supervision to use the stove. Luna and Lori were the only two who didn't, as they actually counted as said 'supervision' along with their parents. Leni couldn't use the stove... ever. At least not since that fire they had had a few years ago.

Lucy sighed, wondering if there was a house rule about leaving a kid alone with a baby overnight as she turned the stove on. It roared to life, clicking a spark that burst to a flame, fed on the natural gas coming from the range. Lucy set the pot on to boil before going to retrieve the plastic bottle Lily had thrown in her fit.

Finding it still relatively full, thank god for those leak proof nubs, Lucy set it in the lukewarm water. It could heat up with the water, shouldn't hurt it, not like this stuff was pasta or anything.

Clunk.

"Ow." Lucy groaned as she inspected the toy Lily had thrown at her head. She must have found it in the chair or something. Lucy frowned at her baby sister as the child screeched, hungry for food and attention.

"Don't throw stuff." Lucy scowled, not feeling very empathetic to Lily's plight after the night she was having. It had been twenty minutes now and she was really sick of Lily's noise. Couldn't she see that food was on its way? Couldn't she stop for five minutes?

Of course not. Lucy scowled, watching Lily slam her fists on the highchair. Lucy tried to ignore the fussy child and look for something else to take her mind off things. Thankfully the first thing to catch her attention was Charles.

The dog wondered in the second Lucy began to look. He seemed sleepy and looked between the two as he yawned. Lucy and Charles had never been that close. The dog was the same age as Lola and Lana. He had been a gift to Luna for Christmas as she had begun to feel left out when the twins were born, and she named the dog after a character in a TV show she and Dad watched together... M*A*S*H Lucy believed. Lincoln was also very taken with the dog, liking to play with him when he was five and still doing so to this day.

Even if Charles was more Luna and Lincoln's dog than anyone else, that didn't mean he wasn't kind to all the kids of the house. So when Lucy stepped down from the stool and pet him, Charles was quick to lick at her hand.

"Hey Charles. Long night?" Lucy asked in her usual monotone, watching the dog look back at the crying baby then to Lucy again. "Yah, I feel yah." She paused for a second to think before going to cupboard by the sink. "Yah want a treat?"

Charles was at her side instantly, tail wagging a mile a minute and sitting up in a begging position. Lucy could only chuckle. "I'll take that as a yes."

She pulled out the box of Milk Bones, amused as Charles started to whine and rub at her leg with his fore paws. She then lifted a treat and instructed him as she had seen Luna do many time before.

"Sit."

The dog was quickly on his rear, all four paws on the floor.

"Shake."

His paw shot out into Lucy's waiting hand.

"Good, now play dead."

Lucy smiled as the dog let out a withering howl, staggering back on three paws with the fourth clutched to his chest. With a dramatic flourish Charles slumped back, limp and lifeless. This was a dog after her own heart. She quickly threw the treat into the air and watched Charles resurrect just in time to catch it in his mouth.

Lucy reached into the box again. "What other tricks do you know... I wonder if Luna wasn't kidding about teaching you to bark the intro to 'The Black Parade.'" Lucy smiled again as she pulled out another treat. "What do you say Charles?"

Charles, however, didn't seem interested, as he began to frantically bark at her. Confused Lucy watched as he took her pant leg in his mouth and tugged on it, turning to run to the-

"Ah!" Lucy yelped when she saw the pot on the stove bubbling over. Dropping the box she ran to the step stool,climbing up to look into the pot. The bottle was misshapen and looked warped... That never happened to mom! She swiftly tried to retrieve it, wondering if she could still salvage the milk inside-

"Ahh!" Lucy exclaimed as she realized a second too late that grabbing a bottle out of boiling water barehanded was a very bad idea. The bottle top still out of water had been burning! Then when she yanked her hand back she knocked the pot, slashing water up on her hand! She whined loudly, clutching her hand to her chest and curling in on it.

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" She whimpered, unhappy to find the pressure not helping. Pulling back she found her hand red and puffy, with some white in some places. It throbbed unhappily and Lucy whined at the pain, unsure of how to stop or treat it.

Her attention was turned back to the stove however. It was still bubbling over and the bottle was steadily melting. Only how could she get the bottle out? Think fast Lucy ripped open a nearby drawer, grabbing the tongs inside. Now only left with her left hand, her non dominate one, she attempted to get the bottle out. She watched as the bottle was barley lifted out before slipping from its grasp. Trying again Lucy absentmindedly curled her aching hand into her nightshirt. Lily was still crying... she apparently wasn't feeling very empathetic tonight either and Charles, who had been watching her, seemed to perk up, running from the kitchen barking. The bottle slipped again and Lucy whimpered in stress, all the noise... the pain... this darn bottle! She made another attempt to save the baby bottle, tongs clicking frantically.

"-hat the heck is going- HOLEY SHI-!" Lucy didn't even have time to look up before she was lifted off her feet and into a pair of arms, one of which took the pot by the handle and swung it into the sink, safely draining the liquid and retrieving the bottle.

Lucy stared up into Luna's face as her older sister made gave a shuttering sigh... Lucy blinked in a sort of awe, her sister had somehow diffused the entire situation in less than five seconds, one handed. Luna inspected the bottle and pot before turning to the stove and shutting it off, running a hand through her hair.

"What the fu- what was that?!" Luna looked down at Lucy first, then to the stove, then to Lily. "What are you doing?!"

Lucy swallowed slightly. "I was, um, I was getting Lily a bottle-"

"By using the stove!? You're too young to use the stove! You can't even reach! I mean why didn't you just- The bottles are- Where is Leni!?" Luna seemed unsure of where to begin, looking frantically around the room.

"The mall... She had a last minute invite to a midnight sale-"

"What?! Why didn't you remind her nobody else was home?!" Luna yelled, lifting Lucy out to arms legth to glare at her.

Lily was still crying.

Lucy withered under her sister's look. "I-I She- I was asleep... I found a note..." Lucy whimpered once more. "Lily w-won't stop crying, she's hungry!"

Luna seemed to take this in, her frantic anger turning to fearful regret. "Oh. Sorry, I-Ah!" this time Luna flinched when Lily threw a toy at her head. The two looked to the beet red infant before Luna tucked Lucy back into her arms. "Ok! Ok, bottle coming up!"

Luna re-enacted Lucy's past actions. Grabbing another bottle and filling it with milk, all one handed still. Luna sighed softly...

"Why were you using the stove?"

Lucy perked at the question, looking to her big sister quietly. "Uh, mom always heated up our bottles with the stove..."

"Yah when we had glass ones. Lynn broke them all trying to practice for the fall fair beer bottle toss game years ago." Luna closed the milk and took the full bottle in her hand. "These are plastic Luc, they melt if their too hot."

"Oh." Lucy cursed herself slightly. She knew that! Plastic melts in hot temperatures! Why didn't she think of it before boiling the bottle.

Luna carried Lucy and the milk to the microwave. "Use this. Much faster, safer and a lot easier." She manged to open it, putting the milk in and filling in a fifteen second cooking time.

Lucy nodded and nuzzled into her sister. Watching the teen start the machine up, then look to the floor. "Whats with the dog treats?"

Lucy looked down as well, finding the box on it's side and cookies all over the place. Charles was back and was clearly enjoying the food he didn't need to work for. "I was giving some to Charles... before the pot boiled over..."

Luna sighed for the third time, only this time slightly exasperated. "Well we gotta clean them up a bit. Chalre's will be clogged if he eats all these." She set Lucy on the ground now, looking the girl in the eyes as she knelt before her. "You pick these up and I'll take care of Lily." Luna nodded towards Lily as she spoke. "I'll get her to bed and then I'll come back for- OH MY GOD!"

Luna snatched up Lucy's right wrist in a panic. "What happened to your hand?!" The rocker teen turned it a bit to look over the red puffy mess that was Lucy's hand. There were more white spots and a few blisters were starting. It was still quiet painful and Lucy winced when Luna shifted her arm to check the back of it.

"I tried to get the bottle out when I saw it was melting, but it was hot, and I was splashed by the water... so um..." Lucy mumbled as Luna kept checking it over for a moment. The older girl looked her in the eyes again, concerned, before lifting Lucy back into her arms and going for the sink. She turned the tap on cold and put Lucy's hand under it.

"Ow!" Lucy moaned as she attempted to pull her hand out from under the stream, only for Luna to hold it in place.

"I know dudette, It hurts, I know." Luna spoke, bouncing Lucy a little in her grasp. "This is the best way to help it."

Lucy shivered as her sister kept her arm under, even as the microwave beeped loudly or Charles kept eating or Lily kept crying. It was a full minute later before Luna let her go. Grabbing a clean dish towel from the drawer and soaking it in the water. After squeezing it out she wrapped Lucy's hand in it, putting her down on the counter and turning off the sink.

"Leave that on, k? I'm gonna give Lily her bottle." Luna said, opening the microwave and getting the drink. After testing the temperature and attaching the nub Luna handed to her youngest sibling, who began to wolf it down ravenously. "Woof! Hungry aren't cha? How long have you been crying for?"

"At least half an hour. Thats how long I've been up, but I'm not sure about before that..." Lucy spoke, watching the brunette look to her then to Lily with a frown.

"Aww, poor lil' Lilly. Don't worry, I'm here now. Every little thing will be fine." Luna spoke as she stroked Lily head. The baby paid her no mind, too intent on eating her long desired food to respond. Luna then knelt down to retrieve the remaining dog treats, though Charles seemed too full to care for now, flopped on his side with a round pudge belly. "No more treats till you work those off buddy. Your jogging with Lynn when she gets back."

Charles whined at her, licking his chops.

As Luna righted the kitchen Lucy couldn't help the shock she felt. What had taken her half an hour Luna could do in five minutes. Lucy also couldn't help but feel a little... useless. If she had never woken up Luna could have come home and done everything fine... minus one burnt hand and ruin bottle that is.

Luna picked Lily up from the chair as the tot finished her drink, gurgling into Luna's shirt. The teen pushed the chair back into the pantry before hefting Lily to her shoulder and padding her back.

Burp!

Seeming pleased the rockette carried the baby back to Lucy, before undoing the cloth to check her hand again. Luna grimaced. "Oh geeze. This ones pretty bad. Were gonna need aloe vera for this." Luna re wrapped her hand and picked her up in her free arm, holding both girls at once. "Lets put Lily down, then we can take care of that..."

Lucy nodded, relaxing as Luna carried them from the kitchen to the dining room. Lily, finally sedated, was watching the gothic girl quietly before reaching out for her.

Lucy quickly secured any loose hair and held it from the infants reach.

The baby paused, whining softly before reaching over and grabbing Lucy into a hug, murmuring into the elder's shoulder softly. Lucy sat in confusion as Lily kissed her cheek.

"Come on Luc, she's try to say she sorry." Luna explained, stopping by the stairs to watch the two. "I don't need Luan to translate that."

Lucy shrugged a bit, returning the hug with her good arm. "Doesn't need to... Shes a baby, they cry." Lily cooed as she patted Lucy on the arm, frowning up at her goth sister sadly.

"True, but sometimes people can get pretty nasty when they're hungry... Need to keep that in mind for you Lily, huh?" Luna smiled as her youngest sister pouted up at her. "You know its true."

Lucy watched as Luna smiled down at them softly before something else caught her eye. She walked to the door side table,having spotted the paper on top and read Leni's note with a growing look of irritation.

"Chantel, its always this Chantel." Luna scowled. "Every time Chantel comes around we get screwed." Luna grumbled slightly before lifting the girls a bit higher in her arms. "Leni ,when I get my hands on you..."

Lucy and Lily pulled back from each other as their sister bemoaned Leni's friend angrily. Lucy frowned before trying to distract the girl. "How was your concert?"

Luna blinked, looking down at them as if remembering they were there. "Oh! It was awesome!" Luna went from angry to stoked at a hairpin turn, the rocker smiling again. "Thanks my buddy Chunk, I got to go back stage and meet some of them! I got Noodle and 2D's autograph and they were really cool guys to hang with... Murdoc was a little off putting though, but still rad I got to meet him."

Lucy tried to look interested with what Luna was saying. All the people she was talking about didn't ring any bells to her, and while Luna was excited Lucy found she couldn't get as invested... Still the girl seemed happier talking about her night than she did about Leni for now.

Getting to the stairs Luna paused, eyeing them suspiciously before looking down at her sisters. "Oie, did you take Lily down the stairs?" When Lucy shrunk in response and Lily babbled happily the rocker shook her head. "Well at least you didn't drop her. Just don't make a habit of it." Luna started up the stairs, taking to herself. "I think Lisa has some Aloe in her first aide kit, we might have to clean it first though."

"How do you know so much about this?" Lucy asked.

Luna smirked, looking smug for a second. "You doubt my knowledge?" Snorting a bit she shrugged. "Well long ago, before I was the rock legend you see before you, I wasn't too sure what I wanted to do. I did some sports, was in a dance class, and took scouts. None of them sticked until I went to that concert for Mick Swagger!" Luna shrugged. "I never really forgot those classes though. I can still dance a bit and those first aide, survival classes are still useful from time to time. Case in point, your hand."

Lucy wiggled the fingers of her injured hand, wincing slightly. "Thats cool, I guess... That concert really changed everything?"

"Uh, how do I say thi- YES!" Luna laughed. "Best experience of my life!"

"Maybe we could go see one... Together ...Dethklok is gonna be two towns over in a few months-"

"UH! Maybe lets hold off on Dethklok... I mean aren't their concerts notorious for being dangerous? They make you sign stuff before you go in... what do they call it?"

"Its a pain wavier. They require you to print it before you get there though." Lucy explained.

"Man I didn't even know you listen to them. From the two songs I've heard their stuffs really good, but I'd say no to a concert. Maybe we can wait and see when another band we both like is playing and just listen to CDs for the time being." Luna said, sweating a little...

"I Tamper With Evidence At The Murder Site of Odin is my favorite song."

Luna sweat a little more. "Goood..?"

"I can't believe you!"

Luna, at the top of the stairs, flinched when the front door opened with Lori whisper yelling behind it. "You left them alone!"

The teen turned to watch the two eldest Loud children enter. Lori still dressed up for her date and Leni, holding some bags in her hands, all bursting with fabric. "I know! I swear I thought she just went to bed, honest!" Leni was pale, looking a little shaken. "I forgot she had that show thingy!"

"Concert, and you can quit the whispering, their 'both' awake." Luna called with a frown, stepping down a few steps to speak with them. Lori and Leni looked up, slightly relived.

"Luna, your home!" Leni said, clearly happy to see her younger sister, her shoulder's slumping. "Oh thank goodness!"

"Yah, but I've only been home for the last ten minutes." Luna frowned, watching the two twitch at the tone of her voice. "What the heck Leni!?"

"I swear, I looked in your room and I thought I saw you in your bed! I didn't remember until Lori called me..." Leni looked to her older sister desperately, but Lori wasn't taking.

"Yah, I called you because I wanted you to turn the light on for Luna when she got HOME, Leni. I mean, I get it ok, a midnight sale happens every blue moon and the deals are amazing but you can't run off last minute." Lori sighed when Leni glanced to the floor miserably before looking sympathetic. "Alright, no damage was done so we can just put this behind us-"

"ERRRR! Try again." Luna growled, taking her sibling's attention. "Lily was apparently crying for the last half hour at least, freakin starving and since Lucy knows diddle squat about babies she tried to heat up a 'PLASTIC' bottle on the stove, then she burned herself. So that's one upset baby, one ruined pot and baby bottle, a jacked up stove burner and Lucy's hand all messed to crap! So no, not no damage done, no leaving this behind us."

Luna scowled at the hurt and guilty look on Leni's face. Lucy could tell the rocker was very cross with her older sister... Lori meanwhile had dropped her purse and hurried up the stairs to Luna's side.

"Is it bad? Do I need to take her to the hospital?" Lori asked, worried as she looked over the two in Luna's arms.

"Just a water burn. Its kinda big but I'm gonna polish it up and put her to bed. We can open that can of bean tomorrow if it looks like its a lot worse or infected." Luna explained, shifting her arms enough to offer Lily to the oldest Loud. "Could you put Lily down to sleep? That way I can get to Lucy's hand faster."

"Yah, sure." Lori said, taking the blonde baby from Luna's grasp. Once she had her safe in her arms, Lori looked back down at the self loathing Loud bellow her. "Leni, go clean up the kitchen. See if you can scrub the burner clean and dispose of the bottle." Turning on her heels Lori scurried up to Lily's bedroom. "We'll talk about this later..."

"R-right.." Leni spoke softly, studying the the carpet around her shoes and wringing her hands before going to the kitchen. Lucy felt Luna hold her tighter before going back upstairs and pushing open the bathroom door. The small room flooded with light as Luna put the toilet seat down and set Lucy to sit on it. The burnette then went to the large first aide kit on the wall Lisa had installed after one of her inventions nicked her head and she couldn't find a single band aide in the house.

'Not that anyone was complaining now' Lucy thought, watching Luna take out Aloe, a bandage roll and some packets before plugging the sink and filling it with water.

"Ok, first things first. We clean the area. This will keep infection out and help it heal faster." Luna explained as she picked the goth up again and carried her to the sink. Lucy eyed the suspiciously calm water. The cool water from downstairs still made her hand throb. Luna seemed to notice as she grimaced. "Ok so this may not feel the best. Just try and hold out till were done k? Its all uphill after this."

Lucy frowned as Luna set her on the bathroom step stool (They had a lot of step stools around the house) and washed her own hands with an antibacterial wipe from the cabinet before taking Lucy's. The girl watching as Luna put some antibacterial soap in the water and swished it round, making a few bubbles appear as she did so. "Nal'right Lucy, this is gonna suck so get ready."

Lucy went ridged as Luna lead her hand into the sink, jumping when she realized that this water was just as cold as it had been down stairs. "AH!"

"Just hold on, k, hold on." Luna said, washing the inflicted area as gentle as possible. She shifted to loop her holding arm over Lucy's shoulders to steady her as the cleaning continued. Lucy winced as her hand throbbed angrily at her, the fiery sensation searing.

"I-it hurts..." Lucy whimpered as her big sister kept going, glancing at Lucy for a moment before continuing.

"Almost done." Luna said, leaning in a bit closer to study the hand as she washed it. She lifted it out of the water for a quick look before shaking her head and putting it back in. When Lucy moaned loudly Luna hushed her. "S'okay, just wanna be sure."

It only took a few more seconds this time before Luna was satisfied, letting Lucy take her hand back and emptying the drain. The dark girl looked her injury over with a wince, stepping back down off the stool when Luna returned with a towel, patting the burn dry carefully.

"Okay, go sit on the seat while I get the aloe." Luna said as she threw the towel in the hamper. "Hey we're almost done, it gonna start to feel better soon."

"Okay." Lucy murmured as she sat down, watching Luna grab the the medication off the counter. Lucy looked down at her hand again thoughtfully... It was nice of Luna to be doing all of this. The girl had to be tired after her concert... The goth blinked as Luna knelt before her, shaking the aloe vera container vigorously. "Luna.." The rocker paused to look at Lucy, attention focused on her sister. "Thanks... For this."

Luna stared at her owlishly before shrugging with a small smile. "No big deal Lucy. It needs doing, and besides, your my sister. I want you get better." Luna turned back to shaking the medication. "Then again don't go thanking me yet. Wait till you get somma' this!" Once Luna was happy with the mixture she squirted some out onto Lucy's hand, rubbing it in as slowly as possible.

Lucy groaned a little, feeling the pain ease and the throbbing diminish causing she to slump in relief, Luna smiling at the reaction. "Told you so! Once we get a good coating on I'll finish up!" Luna squirted more out of the tube, putting a thick coating over the injury. As Luna applied the white petroleum over the entirety of the wound and wrapped it up with the bandage roll, Lucy noticed Lori leaning in the doorway of the bathroom watching.

"Hows it look Dr Loud?" Lori asked playfully.

"Looks fine nurse Loud." Luna responded with a chucked, finally done and setting the hand in Lucy's lap with a pat. "M'kay, we'll check it before bed tomorrow, but you gotta let us know if it starts really burning or aching or itching ok?"

"Yah." Lucy nodded, swing her legs slightly as she looked over her new wrapped hand. Lori was still in the doorway as Luna put the supplies away, so she couldn't help but ask with both of them here. "Is Leni in trouble?"

Both girls looked at each other, Lori looked to Luna with a sort of tired, aged emotion in her eye while Luna glared back. "Well... yah. We gotta tell mom and dad what happened. Not like we can hide that." Lori gestured to Lucy's hand vaguely. "Or that Leni shouldn't learn a lesson from this..."

"She left two kids under ten home alone!" Luna complained as she picked Lucy back up and started toward her bedroom, Lori following after. "Lucy could have burned down the house, Lily could have ended up like that Trainspotting baby or choked on her own puke or-"

"Luna you going a little over board. The house is still standing and Lily can keep her food down fine. This is not Trainspotting bad." Lori's eyes dart to Lucy, who was curled up in Luna's embrace. "Besides, Lucy did the best she could in the situation."

Luna pushed open her bed room door and plunked Lucy down on her bed. "Thats true... Sorry Lucy, I know you didn't mean any of this..." Luna spoke and arranged Lucy's bed into order, fluffing a pillow. "This is just why nobody want you guys using the stove by yourself ok?"

"Next time try and call someone." Lori agreed, watching Luna tuck the goth into bed. Thinking for a second Lori frowned. "Wait, why didn't you call someone?"

"Your phone is off on dates. Luna's would be off for the concert. Leni forgot her and everybody else is too far away..." Lucy shrugged.

"What about the Mc Brides? They seemed nice." Luna added, sitting on the bed with her.

Lucy squirmed, looking to her picture of Poe on the wall. "I didn't want to."

"And why not?" Lori asked, her eyes narrowed as she leaned over Luna's shoulder.

"I thought about it... but I remembered that time Luna was home alone. You called your friend and they call those government people. They wanted to take us away to prison or something..." Lucy mumbled.

Both her sister looked surprised. "Dude you remember that? You were like two!" Luna said, shocked.

"Besides that, they can't just take you guys away without investigation. Sure mom and Dad would be in a little trouble because you were home alone, but our track record is pretty good so I doubt they'd get more than a fine or a slap on the wrist." Lori spoke.

"That first time was all because Carly Snider's parent's are wieners that think they know better than everyone else." Luna scoffed, rubbing Lucy on the head. "Don't worry about that stuff ok? Just call someone next time (if theres a next time) and everything will work out." Lucy nodded as Luna kissed her on the head. "Go back to sleep. We'll be downstairs for a bit if you need anything."

"Ok." Lucy said as Luna moved aside and let Lori in to kiss her as well.

"Good night Lucy." Lori smiled.

"Night." Lucy spoke, laying down in her bed as Luna and Lori left, turning off the lights. She could hear them whispering in the hall and down the stairs. Lucy inspected her hand again, the bandage safely encasing her palm. It was still painful, but was greatly relieved from what it had been. It shouldn't be too difficult to get back to sleep... although she had been up for quite a while... It was two am now. Lucy rubbed her face with her good hand before snuggling deeper into her blankets.

She had been in bed for about ten minutes, listening to the soft humming of the house and the mummers from the TV downstairs. Moonlight filtered in from the window, bringing in enough light for Lucy to make out the small room. She heard the bedroom door creak open and when she looked down she saw Leni's head peaking inside.

"Lucy? You asleep?" Leni whispered. When Lucy shifted in the bed to look at her, Leni came inside. The girl paused at the foot of the goth's bed and shifted, looking around the room and rubbing her arm. "Hey..."

"Hi."

Lucy watched Leni sit on the bed, hands folded in her lap. "Hows your hand feeling?"

"Fine, its not so bad." Lucy said, lifting her hurt hand up for a moment. "It'll be better sooner than later."

Leni looked at her, nodding and toying with her hair nervously. There was an awkward silence as Leni chewed on her lip and Lucy lay, staring up at her big sister. Did she want something? Lucy looked to the clock again to see it was almost two thirty.

"I'm so sorry."

Lucy looked back, seeing Leni slumped forward in the dimly lit room. "I didn't mean for you get hurt... I thought Luna was home, so you were both ok. I'd never leave you guys alone on purpose."

Lucy watched the blonde run a hand through her hair, looking remorseful. Lucy shifted under her covers. "My hand was my own fault Leni... I was the one who used the stove like an idiot and made a mess of the kitchen." Lucy shrugged. " I did't even think to dump the water out when the bottle melted... I'm just... not good at taking care of babies I guess."

"Well I don't think your suppose to be good at it now, right?" Leni said, looking at her. "I mean, she's half your size, you can't carry her very easily. Then with the stove, how were you suppose to drain the water when you can't even reach? I don't think tiny people should take care of even more tiny people..."

"You mean young?"

"Yah that." Leni smiled a little. "Besides, you get better the more you do it. Plus I don't think you just take care of of a baby all alone the first time you do it. I had mom, Dad and Lori show me before I was left alone with a baby."

"When was that?" Lucy asked.

"Uhhh... Three years ago... so Lisa?" Leni explained before slumping again. "So you really shouldn't have been left alone with Lily if your way under thirteen. So I'm sorry, and I'm gonna try and not do it again. I don't want anything bad to happen to anybody."

"Its ok Leni."Lucy said. "I know you didn't do it on purpose."

"Well I still feel bad about it... How about I make it up to you? I can take you for a day at the mall!" Leni said, her grin returning. "I'll get you a new outfit!"

Lucy grimaced, but luckily it wasn't visible in the dark. To her a day spent shopping was a a punishment rather than a gift. Back to school time was a living nightmare to her. However, Leni was a simple girl... in the way that she was very easily brought happiness. Shopping, taking a walk to the park, watching TV, it was all enjoyable to her. Seeing the girl so down and out, Lucy found she couldn't reject her. "S-sounds fun..." Lucy said tightly, trying to make an attempted smile.

"Great! We can go after I'm done being grounded, or whatever mom and dad punish me with." Leni stood back up and gave Lucy a kiss as well. "I'm gonna let you get back to sleep. We can make more plans later." Leni went back to the doorway, taking the knob as she did. "Night."

"Goodnight..." Lucy watched her elder shut the door behind her and heard her descend the stairs. Turning towards the wall, Lucy gingerly moved her injured arm to be comfortable in her new position. She could hear the hum of the refrigerator downstairs with the TV sometimes piping up. The light from the moon and the digital clock glowing in the dark of the room. Lucy sighed slightly and closed her eyes.

"Whaaaa!"

Lucy's eyes shot open, huffing a bit. However this time the stairs creaked immediately as a set of feet came up to tend to the infant. Lily quieted as one of the elder sisters carried her back down for the time being.. Shutting her eyes again Lucy hummed.

It wasn't the first time a baby had woken Lucy up. There had been four of them since she had been born, and the twins had been ear piercing when they were young. Thankfully though, it wasn't her responsibility to get them.

At least not yet.


End file.
